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4.5 Stars

Kaleidoscope by Kristen Ashley is the sixth installment in her Colorado Mountain series. It is no secret that I am a die-hard fan of this author. I love her writing style. I simply love her books. She always delivers when it comes to giving us these memorable monosyllabic and possessive alpha-males that have the right amount of bad-ass and sweet. Her heroines are at times hit or miss with me but her ability to weave a spectacular storyline that lets me escape reality for a short time always supersedes the likability of her heroines. I also can’t always say that her books are flawless, because they are not. But, again, her fantastic story-telling and unique writing style is what makes this author my absolute favorite. KA has once again produced a book that kept me enthralled, deeply immersed and sighing happily. I truly enjoyed this one.

Thirty-seven year old Jacob Decker is a sexy private investigator who is in the town of Gnaw Bone, Colorado to help out his best friend Chace Keaton and the police force hopefully bring down a local crime ring responsible for the suicide of a youth and a recent crime spree. Deck has had one serious relationship in his life which ended very badly. It took him quite some time to get over the said relationship and when things ended with his ex he cut himself off from all those who associated with her, including her best friend, Emme, someone who he had always had a great rapport with. Now, nine years later, Deck comes face to face with the one woman he never expected to see again. With encountering Emme once again, Deck realizes that there is no longer anything standing in the way of them exploring the connection they have always shared. Emme has always been the woman for him even if he was too stupid to realize it when he was younger. Deck is determined to never again let all the beauty that is Emme slip away once again. Hot alpha dude in hot pursuit!

Thirty-four year old Emmanuelle Holmes has always been one to never get too close to people. One exception from her past was Jacob Decker, her ex-best friend’s ex-boyfriend. Emme has undergone a complete transformation in the past year, now being a woman who takes care of herself and dresses well whereas before her physical appearance was not something she put much effort into. Emme moved to the Gnaw Bone from Denver to take over her father’s lumber yard. She has settled and purchased a big home in dire need of repairs which she is slowly doing on her own. And, while things are not too serious, she is in a relationship with a man who she enjoys spending time with. Life is as comfortable and happy as Emme allows. When she runs into Jacob Decker after not seeing him for nine long years, Emme wastes no time in attempting to reconnect with him. She remembers how great of a friend he once was to her and she has missed him dearly. Emme is definitely taken aback when she discovers that Deck wants much more than friendship from her now. Can she allow Deck to get close? For the first time they are able to explore a real relationship and see where it leads. Emme wants nothing more than to have something beautiful with Deck so why is she the one damaging all that could be?

Deck and Emme waste no time in diving right into something more. They quickly discover that the deep connection they once shared as friends is still true, strong and burns bright. They begin seeing one another and are soon very much a part of each other’s lives. I loved the fact that there was no bull shit. Both Deck and Emme understand that they feel deeply for one another and concede to the fact that they missed out being separated for so long. This time they are definitely willing to allow all those pent up feelings they have for one another come to fruition and flourish. Of course, seeing as this is a KA novel matters are not without some snags and hitches. One complication is Emme’s boyfriend (he quickly becomes an ex-boyfriend) and his possible involvement with what Deck is in town to investigate. Further, Emme has some deep rooted demons stemming from an incident in her past that come forth when her and Deck start becoming closer. Will everything get sorted for Emme and Deck to finally have a chance at a happy forever?

“Because it means that much to me, I’m gonna handle this with care. You just gotta believe me.”

****

”You think you lost beauty, Jacob, but you didn't. Just turn the dial.”

“I love you, Jacob,” she declared suddenly, and his arms around her gave a squeeze.

“I know you do, baby.”

“Thank you for not giving up on me.”

***

“You gave me my life back.”

Deck and Emme’s relationship was quite beautiful. I loved how honest they were with one another no matter how hard things got. Deck never once gave up on Emme. He was there for her with unconditional acceptance and love and he refused to allow Emme to retreat into herself and sabotage what they were just beginning to create. He was pure dominant male that only KA can craft with such expertise. Deck was supportive and loving but in no way was he going to put up with anything coming between him and Emme, and that included Emme’s issues that she had to work through. No way did Emme stand a chance against all that masculine goodness that Deck bombarded her with. YUM!

The whole suspense/mystery element of the storyline was not as present in this book as it has been in its predecessors in this series as it somewhat took a backseat to the development of Deck and Emme’s burgeoning relationship. I really did not mind this too much seeing that I absolutely loved Deck and Emme’s romance. I am a romantic at heart after all. For me, this book was more about Emme overcoming some issues and Deck being her support and never once giving up on her. It was a second chance to be something much more profound than friends. So, while this book was not action-packed and intense, it was still awesome as we get a whole lot of sweetness and love. I love these stories where the couple starts off as friends and then things develop into something more. Sigh! And, as always when it comes to KA, we get a lot of the KA crew from the past books in this series making appearances and there are some awesome scenes between Chace and Deck which I adored. It is always fantastic to catch up with lovable and life-size KA characters from previous books.

All in all, Kaleidoscope was yet another reason why I love this author. I will readily admit that this book, much like Jagged (book 5), is not the same as the older books in this series that are not under her publisher. Once again, the publisher presence has made a difference in KA’s books resulting in a more polished product. I really do miss KA in all her glory with a lot of great rambling and a descriptive and wordy writing style. Do not get me wrong, KA still shines through even if it is curtailed a bit and presented in a more fine-tuned form. What it all boils down to for me is the fact that KA always leaves me in a happy place with her books. She takes me away with her stories and then leaves me happily swooning. For that reason my crazy obsession continues and so does my fan-girling.

***An advanced reading copy of Kaleidoscope by Kristen Ashley was provided to me in exchange for an honest review.